Understanding of childhood autism among nurses in paediatric wards

Abstract

Autism, which is part of a spectrum known as the Autism Spectrum Disorders, is a lifelong complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first three years of life. Autistic children are affected to different degrees of severity. Autism is characterised by impairments in social interaction, social communication and imagination. Repetitive behavioural patterns as well as a delay in language development are further noticeable features. The purpose of this study was to explore paediatric nurses' knowledge on childhood autism. Moreover, this study also explored any measures which were taken when a child displays autistic traits. The research design employed was that of a descriptive, non-experimental approach. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data. The Knowledge about Childhood Autism among Health Workers (KCAHW) questionnaire was used after obtaining permission from the authors. Participants included the total eligible population which amounted to forty nurses from the three main paediatric wards at the local general hospital and a response rate of 70% was obtained. The questionnaire addressed the nurses' knowledge with regards to the impairments autistic children experience in 4 different domains. Throughout this research study both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. Overall, findings of this study revealed that paediatric nurses have a good general overview of autism, however nurses were unable to select the characteristics pertaining to autism from characteristics pertaining to other psychiatric disorders. Thus, nurses are not fully aware of the behavioural, social and communicational impairments presented by autistic children. In spite of this, nurses stated several good practices such as support and education which the child and parents could benefit from when hospitalised. Purthern1ore, it was identified that paediatric nurses could benefit from further training. These findings were discussed whilst a number of recommendations for further practice, education and research were made.